Oakland A’s slugger begins series in Cleveland on the bench, resting sore left hip

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BALTIMORE, MD – APRIL 09: Khris Davis #2 of the Oakland Athletics hits a single in the second inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on April 9, 2019 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)

CLEVELAND — Slugger Khris Davis wasn’t in the starting lineup for the A’s game in Cleveland on Monday, but he and manager Bob Melvin say the condition of his sore left hip hasn’t regressed.

“It’s been a slow process, but it’s not feeling worse,” Davis said in the A’s clubhouse. “It’s just kind of lingering.”

Davis missed some time after injuring the hip on May 5 in Pittsburgh. Through Sunday, however, he had been the A’s designated hitter in six of the last seven games, sitting out Saturday’s 4-1 win at Detroit.

In the six games, Davis hit .375 (9-of-24) with two home runs, both in the 6-5 loss at Seattle last Monday.

“Yes,” Davis answered, when asked if an injury sometimes encourages a batter to lock in more mentally at the plate. “You just have to focus on different things, and concentrate on angles. That’s the key to it.”

Davis is batting .250 with 12 homers and 29 RBIs in 156 at-bats.

“We’ve talked about it being day-to-day,” manager Bob Melvin said of Davis’ status before the game. “And I think if he doesn’t play a day, we gain some ground, and if he plays, he kind of stays the same.

“So, incrementally, we’re trying to gain a little ground, and get him better. Hopefully, he feels that much better tomorrow and can play. At this point, we don’t feel like it’s a disabled list situation.”

Second baseman Jurickson Profar began Monday with a .250 batting average (15-of-60) and three homers and 13 RBIs in his last 15 games, boosting his batting average from .162 to .195.

Profar smiled when asked about his rally, but would only say, “I’m feeling good.”

The switch-hitter has five homers and 24 RBIs. Despite his low average, he’s still making consistent contact, as he did last season, when he hit .254 with 20 homers and 77 RBIs.

Profar has struck out 23 times this season, just under 15 percent of his 159 at-bats. He fanned in 88 of his 524 at-bats in 2018, a rate of just under 17 percent. In today’s era of the strikeout, Profar is whiffing at a lesser rate than most big league batters.

“I just see a lot more confidence — from both sides (of the plate),” Melvin said of Profar. “Look at his average right-handed, and maybe he’s doing a little more damage now left-handed — the grand slam the other day. He’s swinging really well.”

Profar is batting .296 with one homer in 54 at-bats from the right side. Swinging left, he’s scuffled, at .143 in 105 at bats. His fourth homer this season as a left-hander was a grand slam that gave the A’s a 6-0 lead in Thursday’s 17-3 rout of the Tigers.

* Third baseman Matt Chapman is batting .143 (7-of-49) with one homer in his last seven games, dropping his average to a still-respectable .260.

“You’re gonna go through some ups and downs,” Melvin said, “but the fact of the matter is, he’s still walking and getting on base. He’s hitting some balls hard.

“It might not be his best stretch, but nothing would suggest there’s any concern from us. He’s been a real consistent performer this year (offensively and defensively).”

Chapman has drawn 24 walks. He has struck out 32 times in 173 at-bats this season, an 18 percent rate. Last season, when Chapman emerged as one of the game’s top young players, he struck out in 27 percent of his at-bats.

* The A’s signed right-handed hitting catcher Cameron Rupp, 30, to a minor league contract on Saturday. He began playing for Class AAA Las Vegas that day.

The 6-2, 260-pound Rupp got significant playing time as the backup catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies from 2013-17, batting .234 with 39 homers in 1,027 at bats.

Sean Murphy, regarded among baseball’s premier catching prospects, suffered a torn left meniscus earlier this month that required surgery and will likely be out until at least mid-June.

“Sean Murphy got hurt, so we wanted to create a little more depth at Triple-A,” Melvin said. “You always want to be at least a couple deep.”